HTC plans rollout of new smartphone

PATIENCE:The firm said it believed customers would be happy with its new flagship product as it steps up its efforts to compete in the competitive smartphone market

By Helen Ku / Staff reporter, with CNA

Taiwanese smartphone vendor HTC Corp (宏達電) yesterday said it would roll out its new flagship smartphone this week in Taiwan, the UK and Germany, after the company reportedly delayed shipments of the HTC One due to parts shortages.

HTC unveiled its new flagship product last month in New York and London.

However, the company confirmed on March 13 that due to a shortage of key components, shipments of the new Android-based smartphone would be postponed until the end of this month.

“The new HTC One will roll out in the UK, Germany and Taiwan next week, and across Europe, North America and most of Asia-Pacific before the end of April,” the company said in an e-mailed statement.

“We appreciate our customers’ patience, and believe that once they have the phone in their hands, they will agree that it has been worth the wait,” the company said.

The HTC One features a 4.7-inch touchscreen and front-facing speakers. The company has high hopes for the phone as its bid to compete with Apple Inc’s iPhone and Samsung Electronics Co’s newly released Galaxy S4.

Meanwhile, HTC yesterday declined to comment on a report that its new smartphone, featuring unique Facebook Inc functionalitiy, had been certified for use in the US by the US Federal Communications Commission.

On Friday, the commission approved an HTC smartphone called “PM33100,” which is seen as HTC’s next customized handset in partnership with Facebook, according to the US-based tech news site Engadget.

Engadget reported the new HTC-Facebook device, which has been referred to by earlier media reports as the HTC Myst, will have dual-band Wi-Fi connectivity, Bluetooth 4.0 wireless radio technology and long-term evolution (LTE) connectivity compatible with AT&T Inc’s network.

The Android-powered phone will also be equipped with a 4.3-inch 720p display, a 1.5-gigahertz dual-core microprocessor from Qualcomm Inc and a 5-megapixel rear camera, the report said.

In February 2011, the Taoyuan-based company unveiled the HTC ChaCha and HTC Salsa phones, both of which have an exclusive button to connect users to Facebook.

However, the two devices appeared to receive a lukewarm response from consumers

HTC yesterday said it would not comment on market rumors or speculation.

Separately, Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) is set to launch its new hybrid device, the PadFone Infinity, in Taiwan tomorrow as consumer interest in smartphone/tablet hybrids grows.

The PadFone Infinity, which was unveiled on Feb. 25 at the Mobile World Congress tech fair in Barcelona, Spain, will be sold via Taiwan’s three major telecoms operators, Asustek said.

No pricing was disclosed.

The PadFone Infinity is a 5-inch smartphone that can be integrated into a 10.1-inch tablet, which features the latest quad-core processor from Qualcomm, a 1920 x 1080 full-HD display and LTE connectivity.